Stillwell Searches
Episode Seven. Confrontation.....
He couldn’t remember what had persuaded him to come to the house. An established client from the store, who he had barely said more than half a dozen words to, had suggested that the house might be worth a visit. He would have dismissed the idea, but there was the possibility of something that may be of interest to the reluctant Stillwell. The date had fallen on a Sunday, so the store would be closed anyway and with the temptation of discovering rare titles and curios he had decided to attend.
The premises were only a short drive away and he knew the area quite well. He decided to exercise caution and parked some distance from the actual location and walked quickly to the address, wheeling a small collapsible sack barrow behind him. “Always be prepared”, he thought as he walked to the house. An estate agent’s sign indicated that the property was for sale and now, here he was, attending a hastily arranged house clearance. It was not something that he had ever been to before. It looked as if his late arrival, over an hour since the event had commenced, would mean the place would be unfortunately busy. He crept through the door, head down, trying to be inconspicuous. He found himself watching a man, who was studying some ornaments by a fireplace. The man had a small camera and every so often he would take a picture of an article and make a note in a small book. As he cast his eye across the large room he saw others also making notes, picking up objects or looking for a maker’s mark on the underside.
A house clearance was totally outside of his comfort zone. Any sort of event where others may be, did this to him. He felt awkward and self-conscious. Against the back wall of the lounge was a large bookcase, with a selection of familiar and popular books arranged in no discernible order. In front of the books were several cardboard boxes. Stillwell nonchalantly opened the box on top of one pile and saw that it contained DVD’s. He moved this box aside and opened the one below it. Another large number of DVD’s contained within. He counted six boxes in total. Now came the decision. To stay and perform his own mini audit, in an effort to find something worthwhile; or take the whole lot and itemise it at his leisure back at the shop premises.
What was the form? Should he go and ask if he could take the boxes? Why not take all of them. Do you offer a price or is one suggested to you by the person hosting the open day? It looked, rather annoyingly, that he would have to engage with someone to find out.
He simply wanted to be in and out, unnoticed, as if he was never there. The more time he spent rooting about in the various cardboard boxes, the more likely he would end up being spotted and it then followed that he would actually have to talk to someone. The possibility of an individual saying something to upset or provoke him would be high. He was away from his normal environment too, which only deepened his unease.
“There are a number of cardboard boxes in front of the bookcase in the lounge”, Stillwell made his question more of a statement to a smartly dressed middle aged lady, wearing too much make up and holding a clip board.
“Oh! Yes. We have had some interest in the DVD’s. Old Mr. Bennett was a devoted movie fan and a keen collector of old films. There was a man here earlier, who said he was keen to take them. I believe he is returning tomorrow”, the lady spoke with a loud and rather haughty tone, which immediately angered Stillwell. He studied her again before he spoke. She was probably in her late forties or early fifties. She was wearing a tight-fitting flowery blouse, with a navy skirt that finished below her knee. Her bosoms had lost their individuality, rather now an amorphous mass under the top. The skirt was too tight and only served to draw attention to her size. Her face was a dark sort of orange mahogany colour, dotted with strategic clumps of make-up, that may possibly have been applied with a palette knife. Stillwell’s contempt and distain were hard to mask.
“Well, I am here now and can take them immediately, do you want anything for them?” Stillwell ploughed on with his desire to take the boxes, he might have to consider mild violence, but a cold stare seemed to be doing the trick.
“I had rather promised them to the gentleman who was here earlier; you understand of course?” the lady began to turn her attention elsewhere, convinced she had dismissed the rather rude man.
“You misunderstand. I am here to take the boxes now. I hope that something unfortunate is not about to befall you, madam. It would be a shame if something dreadful was to occur, simply by testing my patience.
The lady was not sure she had heard the man correctly and turned and was about to deliver a withering response when she saw the look on his face. She hadn’t really looked at him properly before this last statement. The look in those eyes was terrifying. A sea of blackness that seemed to bore into her very soul. She felt suddenly cold and unsure of herself. There were plenty of other people around inside the house, but this man had still managed to grip her with fear, despite this.
“I will take them.”, Stillwell gave the lady one last look; challenging her to disagree with him.
She was rooted to the spot. As this frightening figure stared at her, she swallowed hard and could not form the words in her mouth to speak. She also felt a little dribble of liquid sliding down her legs, to puddle on the floor around her leopard print kitten heels.
Stillwell had already turned away from her and returned to the lounge. He loaded the boxes on to the sack barrow and was gone in an instant, leaving the house clearance lady to suffer that final indignity without him witnessing it. Six boxes of DVD’s were quickly loaded into his vehicle and he was away and back at his store within fifteen minutes. He brought all the boxes inside and opened the one at the top.
“Let’s see if this little excursion was worth it”, he thought, as he began to unpack the first box.
